Daddy Daughter Dance

More text to come.

Sorry, I never got to add more text. Here are some pictures.

Here are the girls all dressed up. I sewed some ribbon onto their Easter dresses.

Here I am dancing with Glitter. We both love spinning around in twirly skirts.

Here's Wander and his girls.


Wander and Sparkle at the end of the line, closest to the camera.

Wander and Glitter dance.

Sparkle and Wander dance.

Homeschool Group Art Club

We had our last meeting of our homeschool group art club yesterday. I finally felt that I had a handle on what supplies to bring:
- music on the iPod (if I don't have music already, don't bother hunting for stuff at the library, just get it from iTunes)
- prints for the artist (full page home printouts are okay if nothing else is available)
- coloring pages for the artist (I found a new way of creating coloring pages from any picture)
- journaling / notebooking pages
- children's story-book featuring the artist for the preschoolers
- children's biography of the artist

We had a good turnout for this last meeting. The kids had fun and the moms helped out. We got off to a shaky start when I was unable to pawn-off the introductory activities to another mom, but things got better when the kids started their small-group work. The kids stayed on task and I was amazed that the oldest group of kids was still working hard when all the younger kids had run off. I got to sit at Sparkle's table and discuss a picture with them. Guiding a small group is my favorite part. I can't handle corralling the preschoolers with their non-existent attention spans, but it's fun to help the school-age kids notice things and make connections. I'm still working on my pet peeves: getting each kid to say at least one thing about the picture, getting the kids to write their names on their papers, and getting the kids to put away their stuff at the end instead of leaving a jumbled mess on the table.

It was really *hot* after lunch during the nature club but that's another topic.

[INSERT PICTURES]

I'm not sure what next year will hold for the art club. At first I thought it would stay the same, and just change up the artists. However, some of the moms were talking of expanding the day with more activities. We'll see. This year was my first experience co-leading an activity for the group. I suck at leading group activities. I am far more of a follower than a leader. Tell me what to do, and I'll do it or explain why not. Ask me to lead something and I usually fall apart. Fortunately I had a wonderful lady co-lead the art club with me.

Ack that most of this post is just random sentences. The text is formatted to look like a series of paragraphs, but they don't hang together. Oh well. I don't care and I don't want to take the time to make sense. This post is mostly just a placeholder to remind me to post the few pictures I took yesterday.

school's out

I decided to end the school year about a month ago because I was feeling worn out with schooling. However, April seemed dreadfully early to end the school year, and I plan to school lightly during the summer, so I didn't tell the kids. I just lightened up our schedule and skipped school on lots of days. Then May rolled around, and I felt brave enough to tell Wander that my "school year" was done. I still didn't tell the kids and the change in our daily routine has been so gradual that they don't see a clear distinction. They just get a lot more play time.

Back in September, Glitter had an official "first day of school" at her preschool, and I officially started Sparkle on the same day for simplicity. Next week Glitter will have an official "last day of school" at her preschool. I'll probably tell Sparkle that it's also her official last day of First Grade, even though in my mind, we've been done with the school year for a while. The beginning and end of the school year is totally arbitrary anyway, because we start and stop textbooks whenever Sparkle is ready for them and whenever she gets done, regardless of the time of year.

Since Glitter will be homeschooled for pre-K in the fall, we probably won't even have an official start date in the fall. Thank goodness the homeschooling laws in my state allow me this flexibility.

force-field

"They must think it's a force field or something."
- Sparkle, referring to birds repeatedly flying into the living room windows while we try to do school.

Making mistakes to learn

When we're doing school, I tell Sparkle that you have to make mistakes to learn. If you don't make any mistakes, that means that the material is too easy for you and you aren't learning anything.

However, I don't really believe that idea myself. I don't think that mistakes are *required* in learning. I think that with careful guidance it is possible to learn many things without making mistakes. For example, it is possible to learn how to ride a bicycle without ever falling over. But if you allow mistakes, teaching is easier and learning is faster. Thus, I support making mistakes when learning.

strange dream last night

I had a strange dream last night. I dreamt that Glitter was dancing on the half wall by the stairs. Before I could tell her to get down, she fell over the edge. I couldn't reach her fast enough, so I just started praying. Time ceased to have meaning. I waited to hear the thunk that meant she had crashed to the tile floor below. It didn't come, so I just kept praying harder and faster.

Then it was like a scene from a movie. Time went backwards (Superman reversing time after Lois Lane dies.). Glitter reappeared at the edge of the cliff (The man in black reappears when everyone is looking for his remains over the edge of the cliff in The Princess Bride.). Only this time her body was in a different position, clinging to the edge of the half-wall (Han Solo emerging from the Carbonite in The Empire Strikes Back).

I rushed to grab Glitter's arms and pull her back over the edge and the dream ends.

Alice in Wonderland

We got a rare family outing to the theatre this afternoon. All four of us went to a junior production of the musical "Alice in Wonderland." We got to see a wonderfully whimsical production starring one of Sparkle's friends from our homeschool group as Alice. Wander normally isn't wild about seeing kids' productions, but he was willing to join the family for this one, and even he admitted that the kids did a good job.

After the show, the girls got to join the cast for a tea party on the stage. They got treats, cookies, and lemonade. They also got to play games: musical chairs and Simon says. Sparkle loved the attention from the cast but Glitter was a bit bewildered and just wanted to eat her cookie. "Alice" was so sweet and helped guide Glitter around, even going so far as to pick her up and carry her to an open chair in the middle of musical chairs.

I forgot my real camera at home, so I only got a few pictures with my iPhone. However, I haven't figured out how to get pictures off the iPhone yet.

Which tool is better (math/grammar)

On one of the homeschooling forums where I hang out there was discussion of which math manipulative is better: the AL abacus or Cuisinaire rods. The AL abacus is used by RightStart math. Cuisinaire rods are used by Miquon math. Both manipulatives can stand on their own, but they do have different strengths. The abacus is great for showing place value, large numbers, and visualizing quantities. C-rods are great for conserving original values when doing arithmetic and showing relationships. If I had to choose a single manipulative, I prefer the AL abacus. Fortunately I don't have to choose and I can have both.

That same homeschooling forum had a discussion of which grammar tool is better: sentence diagramming, or MCT style 4-level analysis. I find myself in the same thought patterns that I had over the math manipulatives. Both grammar tools can stand on their own, but they do have different strengths. Sentence diagramming is great for showing how the different parts of the sentence relate to each other, especially with compounding and modifiers. MCT analysis is great for looking at a sentence on different levels. Overall, I prefer MCT analysis, but it is very weak when it comes to showing what modifiers modify and what conjunctions join. Unfortunately, unlike with math, I feel that I need to choose between tools. So, I chose MCT analysis and I'm looking for ways to add in the info about modifiers and conjunctions.

Thank goodness that this blog is primarily for just myself. The above paragraphs would probably be mostly confusing drivel for anyone else, but blogging gives me a way to mull over my thoughts and record them without having to be coherent.

Camping photos

Here's some highlights in words:

• As I am doing laundry the day before we leave, our dryer breaks down.
• The campgrounds is five hours away. That's ten hours total driving time in the car with kids and no electronics except for an iPod and GPS.
• Four family tents right next to each other, with ten kids ranging from 2 to 10, all blond except for our two, and all girls except for one toddler. (There were lots more families, but these were the ones our kids played with the most.)
• One clear night Wander and I use the Planets app on my iPhone to identify a dozen different constellations.
• Wander conducts two plant classes. There are so many plants right around the central meeting area that it takes him almost an hour to move beyond our trees.
• I work on hand sewing a doll dress.
• The kids go fishing and catch grasshoppers for bait.
• Oppressive heat Friday afternoon puts a halt to almost all activity.
• Strong winds in the middle of the night make me fear the tent might be blown over.
• One of the others in the group brought a tent that was missing the poles and stakes. They use rope to tie it to a tree and borrow tent stakes.
• Sparkle and her group of friends comes back from playing and I ask why Glitter isn't with them. Sparkle doesn't remember when she last saw Glitter and I set off on a panicked run to where the kids were playing. Turns out Glitter stayed behind with one of the other girls just out of sight behind a big dirt pile.
• The girls stay up far beyond their normal bedtimes. I simply wait until they are dropping on their feet before tucking them into their sleeping bags.
• Glitter insists on brushing her teeth every morning (good girl!).
• I get to french braid another girl's hair and the next day it has beautiful waves.
• Late one night Wander are talking with the crowd and the evening turns into a bug-eating contest. Apparently a certain type of moth tastes like almonds.
• Trade blanket results in some very nice trades for Wander.
• I attend a class about lacerations on kids led by a nurse and EMT tech. The nurse has special print-outs just for me.
• Saturday night is the group meal. In the middle of the meal Sparkle repeats a sentence that she overheard and tells me the four-level grammatical analysis of the sentence. After the meal, a master storyteller enthralls the kids with scary stories around a campfire.
• On Sunday morning fear of bad weather and the departure of other families lead us to decided to leave as well.
• We return home with two bags full of dirt-encrusted clothes and a malfunctioning dryer.

And now for the pictures:

Campsite
Most of us camped under the trees. Others who wanted more privacy camped further off. We set up camp on the far side of the trees with a gorgeous view of the wildflowers in front of the lake.




Playing in the Dirt
The kids had three main play areas: a pit of dirt in the middle of wildflowers, a pile of dirt across the way, and a "secret" grove of trees.


Critters
Caterpillars

Moths and butterflies

Dogs (brought by other families)

Giant red ants (Sparkle managed to get ant bites all over her leg from ankle to hip.)

Black widow spider with egg sac

Stillborn calf


Going Fishing


Wander teaching


Fire by friction
One man led a class in making fire by friction. No matches. No lighters. No strikers. Just wood, a knife, some rope, some know-how, and lots of persistence.



Rope Making



Donkey Rides
Someone brought two donkeys and gave out free donkey rides.


Chopping Down a Tree
This man was afraid that the winds would knock down the dead tree onto his tent. He started hacking at it after the first night. Finally, after breaking camp and packing up the tent, he managed to hack the tree down. In the first picture you can see the man standing next to the tree in front of the small white and orange tent. In the next picture the tree is on the ground.

back home

Every member of the family is too filthy for words. We just got home from camping. No running water, electricity, or boundaries for four days. Lots of friends, food, stars, wide open spaces, critters, and of course, lots and lots of dirt.

home life

Here's a what the girls do many afternoons when they're not running around screaming like banshees.

matching outfits

I thought I already wrote this post, but I couldn't find it when adding pictures, so here goes.

Sparkle and Glitter got new dolls for Christmas. A few months later I started making a new batch of dresses for Sparkle. I used some of the leftover fabric to make a matching doll dress. It took Sparkle several more weeks to realize that she and her doll could dress alike.

Here are Sparkle and her doll with matching green three-tiered dresses, matching cloaks, tiaras, and socks. The dresses and cloaks are homemade.

technology

Last month I snapped these pictures of some road work while stuck in traffic. I am constantly amazed at the technology around us.



I look at the gizmo in the last picture and think, someone had to invent that very specialized machine for that specific purpose.

my weekend

iPad / iPhone / iTouch

I got to see an iPad at the Apple store this morning. As a homeschooler, I thing the educational possiblities for this device are huge. Unfortunately, if my experience with an iPhone is any indication, it will be difficult to find quality apps in the deluge of bad apps.

I wish that I could simply write my own app. Hum. Deja vu. It was around this time last year when I discovered GameMaker and Python and wrote my spelling database program. I spent a large amount of my time last summer working on that program. I remember sitting outside the hallway in the library and at dance class typing. Although writing that program was a lot of fun, I eventually abandoned the program because I got burned out on coming up with unique dictation sentences. This year I find myself in a similar position, where I want to write my own homeschooling apps. But, alas, it would cost money to develop my own app and I don't even have the proper hardware, and I don't know how to program, and I write really ugly code.